On October 9, Sarah Dowd, vice president of the Local Bargaining Unit at Kings County Hospital and a nurse practitioner in the Neurocritical ICU with 10 years of nursing experience, was suspended without pay and without formal charges by hospital management following protected union activity.

Last week, Sarah was rounding in the hospital on her day off to support nurses struggling with chronic understaffing that break state-mandated safe-staffing ratios. Rather than turn away from the challenges her coworkers face every day, Sarah showed up, as she has tirelessly done, both as a rank-and-file union member and elected LBU officer, to help address the difficult conditions that affect nurses’ ability to do their jobs safely and provide the care patients deserve.

Following this, Sarah received a letter from management suspending her for “misconduct” without any further explanation of her actions. This is a coordinated effort by Labor Relations and management to stop nurses from organizing and advocating for enforcement of our state-mandated staffing ratios and safe-staffing policies.

We demand Sarah’s immediate reinstatement and call on the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) to fight for her. No worker should face retaliation for standing with coworkers and engaging in protected union activity. Sarah’s suspension is not just an attack on one nurse and union leader; it threatens every worker who speaks up about unsafe staffing, supports their colleagues, or fights for better working conditions.

If management can target a union leader for showing up to support nurses, what message does that send to the rest of the workforce? Without a strong response, management is emboldened, workers become more vulnerable, and the protections we rely on are weakened. Silence and inaction only make it easier for these attacks to continue.

The union must respond with the urgency this situation demands. We need a real fight for Sarah’s reinstatement, accountability from management, and a clear commitment to defending workers against retaliation. An injury to one is an injury to all. Defending Sarah means defending every nurse and hospital worker who dares to stand up for their coworkers and their patients.

Sign this petition to demand that Sarah be reinstated with back pay immediately & stand against union busting.

Reinstate Sarah Dowd immediately. Defend protected union activity. Fight retaliation.

The post Reinstate Sarah Dowd! No Retaliation for Protected Union Activity appeared first on Left Voice.

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